THE FIRST CONSTITUTION OF TEXAS, APRIL 17, 1813KATHnYN GARRETTTexas is a land where historical factors abound in multiplenumerals. Texas has been under seven flags,1 has fought tworevolutions for political liberty,2 has declared independence twice,8has had fifteen capitals,4, and six constitutions." The first con-stitution was the culminating document of the first revolution.In the years of 1812 and 1813, Texas fought her first revolution,hoisted her first republican flag, and formulated her first constitu-tion, a quarter of a century before the conventionally accepted TexasRevolution of 1835-1836.Documents in the national archives, the archives of Texas StateLibrary, the B6xar Archives, and the Archivo General y Piblicode la Naci6n, Mexico, reveal that the Casas Revolution in 1811,and the Guti6rrez-Magee Expedition in 1812-1813, always recordedas a filibustering expedition, are not isolated events in Texas his-tory. Through the documents they achieve something better-thedignity of being one continuous struggle for Texas independence,the value of being a part of that larger revolution for Spanish-American independence. The documents shed the effulgence of apeople's struggle for liberty upon these two events. They provethat the Casas Revolution in 1811 was not an impulsive flare inTexas in response to the Hidalgo Revolution, although promotedby this Mexican revolution, it also sprang from insurrectionary1Fleur-de-lys of royalist France, the red and gold standard of imperialSpain, the green flag of the first Texas Republic proclaimed by Gutierrezand Magee, 1813, the flag of the Mexican Republic, the lone star flag ofthe Texas Republic, the stars and stripes of the United States, the starsand bars of the Confederacy, and the restored flag of the United States.iRevolution for independence from Spain, 1811-1813; revolution for in-dependence from Mexico, 1835-1836; the Long Expedition, 1819, althoughLong declared Texas a free republic, independent of Spain, the movementwas not a revolution in truth, since it was not built upon a revolution ofthe core of Texas inhabitants but was an east Texas affair.'April 6, 1813; March 2, 1836.4Under Spanish rule: Los Adaes, Monclova, Los Adaes, San Antoniode B6xar. Under Mexican rule: Saltillo, Monclova. The Republic (pro-visional) : San Felipe de Austin, Washington-on-Brazos, Harrisburg,Velasco. Republic and State: Columbia, Houston, Austin, Washington-on-Brazos, Austin."Constitutions of 1813, 1827, 1836, 1845, 1869 and 1876.